Breakfast Twist

The classic diner experience meets modern-and-local at the Yards Bruncheon

On the first weekend morning at the Yards Bruncheon, every booth and chrome-edged table is filled. Servers hustle around with coffee and warm plates, then stop in front to put more names on the wait list. A few people leave after hearing the wait time could be 45 minutes; they wait at the door to exit as more people stream inside from the cold, stamping off snow at the threshold.

"It's busier than expected, so that's good," says Adam Hegsted, the owner and chef, briefly stepping away from the bustling open kitchen.

The new Kendall Yards restaurant serves up breakfast and lunch seven days a week inside a cozy building next door to Hegsted's other project, the Wandering Table, which is set to open this spring for the dinner and evening crowd. The Yards is built for daytime, with a bank of windows at the front welcoming light into the pale teal interior. It has the booths, chrome-edged tables and checkerboard floor of a classic diner, but other details — mismatched vintage silverware, geometric globe lighting, jazz music — make it a charming pastiche of old and new.

The menu reflects the same mix of creativity and comfort, with breakfast options like ricotta-apple pancakes topped with cinnamon syrup ($6) or chorizo and egg tacos ($9). Lunch options include a variety of soups, salads, sandwiches and burgers, like the Tur+duc+ken sliders ($11). The menu includes both chicken and waffles ($13) and Fish n' Chips ($12). Vegetarian options like the Beet Burger ($8) and Roasted Squash Omelet ($8) were popular the first few days, Hegsted says. The menu is designed to change based on the season and what's available from local producers — as warmer weather brings more greens and other produce, the menu will reflect that.

The Yards exclusively serves Roast House coffee, with an extensive list for those who want to get pour-over coffee and choose the beans, too. Those looking for different breakfast buzz may want to peruse the list of drinks for a mimosa, Irish coffee or Brass Monkey instead. ♦